Page 47 of CEO's Baby Scandal

“And listen to me. I want kids. I want a hundred kids. I want whatever you want, Em.” His hand brushed over my breast and down to my stomach, where he cradled the growing bump. “I want them with you, and only you. I never thought I’d be a good parent, but I know if you’re my wife, if you’re the mother of my babies, I’m going to be okay. You’ll show me what I need to know. We’ll do it together.”

“Yeah?” I asked, sobbing, letting his reassurance wash over me like the waves of the ocean, whisking my fears out to sea forever.

“Yes,” he said, kissing my forehead. “So get it out of your head that I’m upset with you or that I don’t want you, because from the first moment I laid eyes on you, you were the only thing I wanted. You’re the only woman I’ve ever wanted. I need you in my life. Without you, I’ll have nothing.”

I cried for a few moments, and he wiped my tears away. All of this was so overwhelming to me after weeks of being so scared I'd lost him or that he’d hate me. Charlotte was right the entire time. If I’d have told him, I’d have ended my suffering weeks ago. The torture of it had driven me to depression despite being elated over the life growing inside me. It was more than I could ask for.

“Look at me,” Dan said, squeezing my hip bone. I peered up at him, blinking my tears away. “I don’t want you living here anymore. I can respect that you want to do things on your own, pave your own path. But this neighborhood is dangerous. Thisapartment isn’t even fit for living, Emily. You are moving in with me. I want you in my bed, in my arms, and in my life forever. I’m not taking no for an answer. I’m in love with you. I need you close to me.”

Nodding, I pushed myself up and sat next to him. He took my hand and kissed one finger at a time before pressing my palm against my belly and holding his hand over it. “You did this…” I whispered, softly smiling as I wiped more tears away with my free hand. I felt his sex draining out of me and didn’t care.

His smile said everything. “Wedid this.” He leaned forward and kissed my stomach, then sat up next to me. “And you don’t have to work a day in your life. I’ll provide everything you need. You can be a stay-at-home mom, join the PTA, lead the soccer mom squad… whatever you want.” He chuckled, but I shook my head firmly.

“No. That’s not what I want. I got a degree because I want to have a career. I want to use my skills and talent, Dan. Not that being a mom isn’t the best thing to ever happen to me, but I want to do something with my life.” He looked surprised at how I stood up to him, but his face softened and he cupped my cheek.

“Then you will be the best business manager the world has ever seen. We’ll make sure every one of your dreams comes true.” He paused, then added, “But you’re still not living here a second longer. Pack whatever you need for the next few days, and I’ll send someone to get the rest.” He climbed off the bed and said, “Now, point me to the bathroom.”

I raised my arm in the air, pointing toward the hallway door, and he vanished, not ashamed to walk around naked in front of me. I cupped my baby bump and grinned, still feeling emotional. Never in my wildest dreams had I thought this was the way it would work out. Daniel was everything I ever wanted and so much more than I expected. I loved him more than I even knew I was capable of loving someone. I knew if Mom and Dad justgot to know him, they would love him too. I would make it my mission over the next several weeks to make sure my parents knew exactly who Daniel Jacobs was to me, and why.

32

DANIEL

Emily was nervous, I could see it in her eyes the moment her parents walked through my front door. They’d been nothing but callous to her since they’d arrived, and the fact that her sister hadn’t even responded to the invitation had crushed her. I sat next to her as dinner progressed, my staff serving us the delicious menu the cook had prepared for us.

Emily’s mother sat next to her, her father on her mother’s left. My father sat to my right, my mother to his right, and Nick and Ginny joined us too, seated across from Grace and Michael. Benjamin had declined the invitation, having already made plans for the evening. Everyone who was important to us was here except Evelyn, though I understood maybe she was a bit embarrassed to see me again, given the stunt she'd pulled.

“So, you're an entrepreneur?” My dad asked Emily’s father. “And you’ve been building your business for more than a decade and only just started turning a decent profit?”

I clenched my jaw at my father’s obvious attempt to incite a reaction out of Emily’s father. I was thankful the man was an even-tempered person. He shrugged and had a bite of his steak, chewing carefully before responding.

“Starting from scratch is quite difficult without investors to help you get off the ground, but we managed.” Mrs. Kline smiled politely at my mother who had a dirty look on her face. She hadn’t said a single nice thing today, and I hoped for Emily’s sake that she would hold her tongue. I knew my mother could be very verbal when she disagreed with something.

“Dad, I think it’s honorable that Mr. Kline worked so hard to get where he is today. Not everyone is born with a silver spoon in their mouth.” I nodded at Tom, and though he looked apprehensive, he nodded back. I wanted him to understand I didn’t think of myself or my family as better than him, despite the ostentatious display my parents put on. They’d overdressed for the occasion, making the casual clothes Emily’s parents were wearing look like rags.

Nick chimed in, speaking with his mouth full. “Yeah, I built my company from the ground up, though I did have investors during the process. What you did takes guts.” It was pleasant hearing Nick back me up.

Dad’s eyebrows rose and he shrugged one shoulder. “To each his own.” He looked thoughtful and then continued. “Have you ever been to Sanibel Island? I heard it’s beautiful this time of year. And after a big storm, you can find conch shells just littering the beach.” He narrowed his eyes at Tom, and I could have kicked him. The people my father associated with prided themselves in one-upping each other in everything—homes, cars, vacations.

“Dad, I hardly think this is the time to?—”

“No, it’s okay, Dan.” Emily interrupted me and smiled at her father. “We actually like to camp. We don’t do fancy condo vacations, so we spend a lot of our time in the great outdoors. There is a national forest just south of where we live, and the hiking is amazing there.”

“Of all the…” Mom scoffed. “How do you sleep outdoors? The bugs have to be dreadful. And aren’t there creatures out there? Snakes, wolves, that sort of thing.” Her face screwed up into a disgusted grimace, exactly as I knew it would. My parents had no clue what roughing it meant, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they thought Emily’s family was a pack of hobos just because they enjoyed tent camping.

“Oh, you get used to being a little dirty. Being in touch with Mother Nature is refreshing. Disconnecting from technology and society every now and then is very beneficial to your health.” Nancy smiled, and Ginny chimed in.

“Oh, I love camping. I used to do it as a kid, but Nick here hates bugs.” She chuckled. I could tell she was trying to bridge the gap, and before the situation got any more tense, I decided to start the real conversation. Mom and Dad had tried to separate me from Emily from the instant they knew I was interested in her, and telling them we were expecting would upset them.

I cleared my throat and wiped my mouth, dropping my napkin to the table in front of me. With a nod of reassurance from Emily, I stood and everyone looked in my direction. “I just wanted to say thank you all so much for joining us today for dinner. I know that from the beginning, all of you have had your reservations about this relationship.” I eyed Michael, who still had a scowl on his face.

“Well, dear, I—” Mom started, but I cut her off.

“Let me finish.” I pursed my lips, discouraging her interruption, then I continued. “As I was saying, we are grateful that you are in our lives. I hoped that this dinner would help us all get to know each other better. So let me start by addressing Mr. and Mrs. Kline. Tom and Nancy, I love your daughter very much.” I reached out to Emily, hoping she’d join me, and she did. She stood next to me and wrapped her arm around my waist, leaning in as I held her to my side.

“We have something very special to tell you all, and I hope you are as thrilled about this as I am. Mr. and Mrs. Kline, you already know this, and I can’t fault Em for telling her mother first.” I smiled at Nancy and watched her expression sour. She frowned and glanced at my mother. I continued regardless of her reaction. “Emily is expecting. We are going to have not one, but two babies.”

Bracing myself for the responses, I looked around at the angsty faces. Michael’s face remained in a deep scowl, but Grace offered a soft smile and a, “Congratulations, Dan. I’m really happy for you.”

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